I have been trying my best to provide my family with healthier options when it comes to food and drinks. I've been cooking from scratch and I've been thinking about how much sugar and other ingredients are in the juices that I am giving my kids.

I decided a power juicer was a healthier alternative. Jack LaLanne's Power Juicers advertise that you can get up to 30% more juice than other juicers and it has a whisper quiet operation. Most of the American diet consists of overprocessed, overcooked foods. Canned and bottled drinks often contain preservative, added sugar, and artificial flavorings. Why fill your body with unnecessary ingredients? Fresh juice not only helps appease your appetite, so you don't want to eat as much, but helps keep your energy up!

Jack Lalanne sent us the Power Juicer Express.Designed for those who have limited space in the kitchen. No need to precut ingredients due to it's size. This juicer accommodates most fruits and vegetables whole to produce a fresh glass of juice in just seconds. A sleek and compact version of the original with the new non-drip spout feature and the same best selling extraction technology.

I wasn't sure what to expect with the juicer because I've never used one. I was worried that cleanup would be a nightmare and I had no clue how much juice would come out of one piece of fruit. I had no reason to worry because using the juicer couldn't be easier. There is no need to cut up any fruit or vegetable as long as it fits through the chute. You do need to take the stem off of things like apples and the peeling off of citrus fruits, but other than that, it couldn't be easier.

Here is a video of us using one medium apple. I'll be honest-it really does have more juice in it than I though it would! The video also shows exactly how loud the juicer is and how to use it. I took the stem off of the apple, my husband turned it on, then we fed it through the juicer.

The juicer is extremely easy to take apart and clean. This is the inside of the juicer. It is the filter/blade.

This is the pulp collector on the back of the machine. They say that putting a bag inside of it makes cleanup even easier, but I just dump it in the trash and then rinse the rest out over my garbage disposal.

That silver handle is the latch. It keeps all the pieces tight and secure on the juicer while in use. There are several safety features that allow the juicer only to work when put together properly.

The juice comes out of the spout into whatever container/cup you'd like.

My kids agree that fresh squeezed juice tastes so much better than juice from a bottle! The manual suggests that you drink the juice immediately because that is when it has the most nutrients.

This is what all of the pieces look like after it has been used. Even though it looks like a big mess, cleanup really couldn't be easier. Make sure you immediately take the pieces and rinse them off over your garbage disposal. It takes less than a minute to have all the pieces of fruit or vegetables cleaned off. If you don't rinse immediately, it will be a dried up mess.

Not only is the juicer perfect for making juice, but it also allows me to make smoothies, ice pops, and other goodies. I can save the pulp out of the collector and use it, then I can use the freshly squeezed juice. The actual juicer doesn't take up much room at all in my pantry. It is only 14.5"X12"X16".

Our favorite thing to juice is apples. As it gets cooler outside, I'll warm it up on the stove and make wassail. I've also found that I can sneak veggies that my kids don't usually like(such as carrots) without them even noticing. We haven't found a combination that we don't like. Lucky for me, the juicer came with several recipes to try out with combinations I would have never thought of. Now I experiment with a few fruits/vegetables at a time until I make a new "masterpiece".

4- Follow twoofakind on twitter and tweet about this giveaway. You can Tweet once a day for an extra entry every day! You can copy and paste: Win a @JLPowerJuicer Express ($99.99 ARV) @twoofakind http://tinyurl.com/2g4jgau

7- Become a fan of/like Jack LaLanne on Facebook. Leave them a comment letting them know you're entering!

8- Enter any of my current giveaways.

Contest ends at 11:59pm EST on October 18th when I will draw a winner at random. PLEASE leave your email address if it is not visible on your profile. I will notify the winner and they will have 36 hours to respond!

Open to US only.

This was not a paid post and honest opinions were used. The opinions are solely my own and may vary from others. Thank you to the company and/or PR agency who supplied the products for the review and giveaway.

Yeah! Great giveaway. This would be the perfect b-day gift. I'm turning 42 tomorrow and need all the help I can get to stay young! Here's my fact..Save a plastic bottle from being thrown in the landfill by making your own healthy juice.Here's my tip... Put the roughage from the vegetables in a compost bin instead of the trash.Blogged about your contest. (At the bottom of post)http://www.intentionalconsciousparenting.com/2010/09/and-winners-are-congratulations-to-lucy.htmlSigned up as a new follower, facebook friend, network blog follower and subscribed by email.wolfpackmt@msn.com~CarolGot a minute? Check out our blogs. We dream of having a follower base as big as yours. Great job!http://www.intentionalconsciousparenting.comhttp://www.creatorscreatures.blogspot.com